Not My Type
by green frogs
Summary: Akira has always dated older, more mature women who are sophisticated and smart. That's all about to change when he finds himself engaged to someone who embodies everything cute, innocent and naive. She's not his type, but who really cares about type?
1. The Stalker

"Who is she?"

I looked over. She was staring at me intently and blatantly. She didn't look embarrassed that she had been caught staring. In fact, it looked like she didn't care. She was staring and I didn't know her. Not that complete strange girls staring at me is uncommon. But she didn't blush and turn her head away like some of the other girls who would stare at me. She watched my every move and didn't look away. Scary, really.

"I don't know," I said with a shrug of my shoulders and turned back to the girl next to me. Sakura something or the other.

I could feel the eyes on my back. I had that feeling that I was being watched. And I knew who was watching me. That girl. I took a tiny glimpse back at her. She was still staring at me, with those wide, intense and innocent brown eyes. She didn't look like the kind who would be in a bar after midnight. Actually, she looked like the kind that watched cartoons and hugged children and stupid stuff like that. She looked about as mature as a 5th grader.

I looked back towards my girlfriend. Her silk black curls fell from her head down to around her waist. She was wearing this skintight mini dress and a halter-top to match. Actually, we're not technically dating. She's married to some oil tycoon somewhere. But she was hot and mature, my kind of girl, unlike someone who was digging holes into my back with their eyes. I turned around again, to see if she was still watching.

This time, I studied her features. She was pretty, in an innocent, cute kind of way. Eh, not my type at all. She had very straight shoulder length hair and a very cute nose that made you just want to squeeze it. Her eyes were the most noticeable. They were brown, intense and looked like they were on the verge of tears. The light flickering in the bar somehow enhanced that effect her glistening eyes. Her mouth was small and a light pink. What made her most distinguished in the whole bar was that she was the only girl not wearing make up. In fact, she was wearing a sweatshirt with jeans. Not your typical club-wear if you ask me.

"Akira?"

"Hmm?" I asked, turning back to my date.

"Are you listening?"

"Yeah, of course. You were talking about your new hotel that you were thinking of expanding. So how do you expect to advertise it?" I asked, hoping she would just go on talking for another 5 minutes.

"That's a good question. I have a couple of friends in the..."

I tuned out. I turned back to the girl again. I didn't know why I was staring at her so much. Somehow, I was intrigued and couldn't stop. She stared back at me with the same intensity and took no notice of my staring. In fact, it seemed as if she couldn't see the fact that I was staring. She seemed so lost in her own world of simply staring at me. Suddenly, I wanted to know who she was, what she did and why she was staring at me. Somehow, I didn't think it had anything to do with the way I looked or who I was.

I almost jumped a foot when my phone vibrated. I picked it out and found Soujiro's name on the screen.

I uttered an apology to Sakura.

"Yo, what's up?" I asked.

"Dude, where are you?"

"I'm on a date at a club."

"Are you serious? You aren't at home getting ready for the trip? You do know that we aren't waiting for you this time."

"I was five minutes late last time!" I screamed, remembering the France trip to celebrate Shizuka's wedding. The guys and even Makino herself gave me a long lecture about it in the 10-hour flight. Tons of fun, trust me.

"Yeah...five minutes and we missed the flight," Soujiro said indignantly.

"Whatever, I'll be there. I don't see why we have to go to Hawaii anyways. We've been there so many times it's actually a bit boring."

"Cause Makino has always wanted to go and Tsukasa is a hopeless romantic idiot."

"Why are _we_ dragged along?" I asked, clearly knowing the answer. I just didn't want to talk to Sakura anymore. She was getting boring. Maybe I'll find some rich divorcee in Hawaii or something like that.

"Because Tsukasa is an idiot. You think we should take Rui out? He seems depressed ever since France."

"Maybe..." I said, thinking about Shizuka's wedding. Rui had been smiling the whole time but I could tell something was wrong. I suppose it's like a special gift of mine.

"Akira, we should take him out, meet some girls, actually maybe get a date," Soujiro said with a sigh.

"Maybe not..." I said with a smile, knowing how Rui is. He would never go to a bar to meet girls. He preferred to read his books and sleep for 13 hours.

"Whatever. Just don't be late this time. My private plane is in London with my father and Tsukasa is flying in on his. Rui's mother is in Paris with their plane and didn't you say your father was out somewhere."

"Moscow," I responded.

"So we have to catch this flight. I can't believe we're flying on a commercial airline."

"It'll be fine..." I reasoned.

"Okay, I got to go. See ya tomorrow," Soujiro said. The line went dead.

"That was your friend?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah."

She paused for a second for me to explain. When I didn't she said, "Going to Hawaii huh? Am I invited?"

"Sorry...it's mainly a guys' thing," I said with an apologetic smile. I wasn't very sorry though. She was turning out to be a bore. Perhaps I'll have to dump her when I come back from Hawaii.

"No big deal. I was planning to go shopping in Paris anyways." She was offended. I could tell.

"Well I've got to go pack," I said with a smile, calling an end to the evening. She gave a wistful sigh.

Goodbye time...

"Akira...I think I really love you."

Or not...

"What?" I said, trying to keep the shocked look off my face.

"It's just so right with you. You're everything I've ever wanted. You make me forget about money and my husband and everything I've ever had. I think I want to leave Toshiro for you. When he comes back from New York, I'll tell him right away."

Oh shoot.

"But... " I said, trying to get her to change her mind.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you," she said with such a shiny love in her eyes that I fell back for a second, not expecting it. I recovered fast as I gave her a slight sympathetic look. Never mind about ending it after Hawaii. I needed to end it now.

"Look, as great as you are, we're just not meant to be," I said smoothly, trying to soften the blow for her.

She stopped smiling and looked into my eyes.

"What?" she said, shocked.

"Sakura, you're beautiful and intelligent and sophisticated but I can't marry you. You belong to someone who'll appreciate you more and love you more. I can't do that darling," I said with as much feeling as I could. It was almost midnight and I was tired. This was one of the lines I knew by heart. When I felt more creative, I would come up with something romantic and fresh. But not today.

"But Akira..." she said, losing steam.

"Your husband loves you more than I'll ever do and to you, this shall remain a mere fling in your life. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. You'll be happier with him."

I gave her one last kiss and decided that I should walk away.

Perfect. She didn't look mad, just slightly disappointed. I walked away with a smile on my face. I didn't get slapped nor had any beverage thrown over my head. I consider this a very successful breakup.

I was humming as I exited the bar. Hawaii to look forward to and plenty of girls. Perhaps I can even find a decent relationship there with someone I could actually converse with. Long nights of me and Soujiro out at the bars, catching up on old times and picking up girls. Who cares if Hawaii is a bit old-fashioned? I needed a vacation. A very long vacation from life.

Then I felt the feeling that someone was watching me. I turned around, fully expecting a burglar or someone. No need to fear. I took tae Kwan doe since I was five.

Except it wasn't a burglar. It was a girl. The same girl with the eyes.

"Can I help you?" I asked.

She nodded, a tiny bit shy.

"With?"

She looked down at her feet and her hair swept across her face. She nervously tucked them back behind her ears, reminding me a bit of my sisters when they were scared or embarrassed.

"Are you Mimisaka Akira?" came the soft, musical voice.

"Yes," I said with what I hoped was a comforting smile.

She didn't look up from her shoes. She was a lot different from Makino or any of the other girls I've been around. She was shy, adorable and cute.

"And who are you?" I spoke as if I was talking to a seven year old.

"Harumi. Tokashiro Harumi."

I looked at her, expecting her to elaborate. She didn't. She merely looked down at her shoes. I stepped forward and looked at her closely. She was quite pretty, with her hair falling into her glistening eyes and her little pouting mouth. Her cheeks were flushed pink.

"Are you-"

And before I could say another word, she burst into tears. And not just quiet tears that trailed down her cheeks. No these were loud, sobbing tears. She brought her hands up over her eyes and bawled away. Out of instinct I grabbed out to her and hugged her tight, shushing her and patting her back as I've done for my sisters and my mother so many times. It was pure instinct. The moment she started crying like a baby, I reached over and didn't care that she was a mere stranger. Perhaps it's the fact that I've done it so many times it felt just right. Perhaps it was the fact that she seemed somewhat familiar, like I know her from somewhere. But that may be the fact that she resembles my sisters.

"Shh...It's okay. Are you hurt anywhere?" I asked.

She merely cried on and I stood there, feeling my two hundred dollar shirt get soaking wet from her tears. Great...that wasn't going to wash out. She was soon running out of tears and energy and I slowly pulled her away and sat her down at the bench right next to the club. I took out my handkerchief that I've always carried and placed it over her nose.

"Blow," I ordered.

She did as I asked and before soon, she was a mere quiet shivering mess.

I took out my cell and called my car, giving them instructions of where I was. I slowly patted her hair as we waited. I couldn't help but notice that she smelled like lilacs and lavender, a different smell from the vanilla and brown sugar flavor that floated through my house and a different smell from the strong intoxicating perfumes of the women I dated.

"Now are you hurt anywhere?" I asked again.

She shook her head.

"Then what's wrong?" I inquired softly, still patting her hair.

She merely shook her head. I sighed in resignation and waited for the car. This was definitely one of the weirdest things in the world. I'm usually a nice person but not so nice that I would let a mere stranger cry in my shoulders. I thought back to our conversation. She knew my name. Why?

"You know my name?" I asked suddenly.

She nodded her head.

"How?"

She looked up at me. "Because you're my fiancée."

* * *

A/N: My first Hana Yori Dango story. I've had this around for a while on my computer, ever since I finished reading Hana Yori Dango around a year ago, and just decided to spruce it up a couple of days ago. It's not the best writing but it's not a bad story... I think... The writing and the plot gets better, trust me, since I have around 20 more pages on my computer, already written and waiting to be edited. So please review!


	2. Haru

The moment I got home, I handed a frightened Harumi over to a maid and stormed into my mother's room. She was there in a frilly, lacey dressing gown playing tea with my sisters and other stuffed animals.

"Akira! You're back early!" she said with a smile as my sisters brightened up when they saw me.

They were just about to jump up and run to my arms when I screamed, "I have a fiancée?"

My mother paled for a second and my sisters stopped in their tracks.

"What's a fiancée?" Emu asked.

I didn't bother to explain as I ran over to my mother at her tea set. Instead of talking to me, she called the maid.

"Sonoka, take the girls to their rooms. It's time for bed."

"But mommy!" they screamed.

"Remember darlings, we're doing something extra fun tomorrow so go to bed early!"

They ran over and hugged me and mother before running off to bed.

"Take a seat, Akira," she told me.

I sat down on the miniature furniture of the tea table, careful not to squash the tiny chairs.

"How did you find out?" she asked. For a second, she resembled someone else, someone that wasn't my mother. She was serious for the first time in a very long time. She seemed to finally act her age.

"She's in our house!" I exclaimed.

"Really? Oh my god! Was it a very romantic meeting? Did you guys fall in love at first sight? Was she very adorable?" And then the moment was gone. She was back to acting like a preteen girl. Oh hooray.

"No! No! And NO! I found her following me, and she burst into tears. She knew my name. So I asked her how. Then she happens to mention the fact that she's my fiancée? What the hell is going on?" I screamed. I've almost never screamed to my mother before. She would usually burst into tears and it got nothing accomplished.

As usual, the waterworks started. She flung herself at my side and cried away.

"Oh Akira!" she sobbed. "I didn't want you to find out like this? It's horrible! I'm sooo sorry. I've always taught you to believe in true love! And now it seems sooo mean of me to make you get married!"

She flung herself into my arms and I rolled my eyes as I patted her back. Great. Her tears were soaking the other shoulder of my shirt.

"But! But! Well...you know you're from a privileged background. And..." she burst into tears again.

She didn't have to explain. I've known it from the beginning. We were from privileged backgrounds and we had to marry someone rich and well off. Soujiro had an arranged marriage too, as well as Rui and Tsukasa. We're rich and thus, we weren't meant to marry for love. We were meant to marry someone who would bring money into our families. Makino and Tsukasa were different. They've found true love and overcame all the obstacles in the way. Tsukasa was lucky indeed.

My mother looked into my face and she calmed for a second.

"I felt so guilty, Akira-kun. When your father and I entered into it, we believed it was for the best. You were barely two years old then. She's the only daughter of a very well off family. They have hotel chains and oil pipelines in the Middle East and department stores and car companies and electronics and everything under the earth. We didn't think it would be good to tell you, since well...she disappeared merely a year after the engagement was made. She was kidnapped or something at the age of three. I don't know the specifics. But Akira! Her grandfather has found her again just a year ago. We didn't know the wedding was still on until a couple of weeks ago when her grandfather phoned us! Oh Akira! We should've told you! But we didn't think it would actually happen...and...and..."

And then she burst into tears.

"Mom, I don't blame you," I said as I reached into my pocket for my other handkerchief. I gave it to her as she dabbed her eyes and blew into it.

"Really Akira?" she asked with a hopeful face.

I was that kind of person, the kind that forgives easily...unlike Tsukasa or Soujiro. Though Rui may be known as a pacifist, I believe I'm more so. I go out of my way to help others and even "more disgusting", as Soujiro states, I enjoy helping others and listening. I care while my friends didn't. After Makino came along, she brought Rui and Tsukasa out of their shells a little and I'm glad about it. But they're still not human.

"Really," I said with my best convincing smile. "But I'm not going to marry her."

"What?" my mother asked, slightly taken aback.

"I can't marry someone I don't love," I stated clearly. Really, I didn't want to give up having so much fun. Plus, marrying this girl? She's like two years old. How could I without thinking she's a sister?

"Oh Akira! I know it is wrong of me to ask so of you! I would prefer you didn't marry someone out of obligation. You don't have to...if you wish not to. But your father..." she paused after that statement.

My father. He is the head of the underground mob and controlled basically the whole underground of Japan. He's in control of everyone, from mob families to the black market. He is a tough man and I often wondered why he would marry someone like my mother. My mother who is everything that's opposite of what he is. My father...who was not the least bit romantic and didn't care that I would marry someone I didn't love. My father...who would do anything in order to gain more power and money.

Then she burst into tears again.

I stopped her crying in time.

"Father doesn't get back until two months from now does he?" I asked.

She nodded and it reminded me of Harumi. They were so much alike. I couldn't possibly marry her. She was the exact same person as my mother. And that is gross.

"Okay. I'll handle it until then," I said finally. "I'm going to Hawaii tomorrow and I'll hide out there for a week or two."

She nodded again, still sniffling.

I got up from the tiny chair and headed towards the door.

"Akira...you can't hide from your father forever you know," she whispered.

Yes I can. As long as I run, I can hide from him as long as I want.

* * *

I knocked on the door of a rather large guest room.

"Come in," a small timid voice said.

She was wearing a large t-shirt and shorts underneath. She sat in bed with a book next to her. She had probably gotten that from a maid.

"How are you?" I asked.

"Fine," she nodded with a blush.

I walked over and handed her the mug of hot chocolate in my hands.

"Hot chocolate is the best thing to drink when you're upset," I told her with a comforting smile.

"Thanks...for everything," she said with a goofy smile of her own as she took a sip of the hot chocolate.

"So why were you at the club?" I asked as I took a seat on the gigantic king sized bed.

She didn't answer for a second.

"Miss Tokashiro?" I asked.

She quickly spit something back into her mug.

"Sorry. It was really hot," she said with another one of her goofy smiles. They were very funny. She only had a dimple on her right cheek and her smile was slightly crooked. It gave me the impression that she was a little kid telling a very funny joke. The smile was infectious and I smiled back at her.

"I was at the club because I ran away," she said with a sigh. It was almost weird to see her sigh. She seemed like such a little kid and then she was suddenly looking like she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders.

"Ran away?" I asked, "from home?"

"Yeah..."

"Why?"

She chewed her lip for a second.

"Promise you won't tell grandpa?" she asked.

I didn't even know who grandpa is. "I promise."

"You've got to pinky promise," she said as she held out a pinky. She was the spitting image of my sisters. They would make me pinky promise as well, to basically everything.

I linked my finger with hers and said, "I pinky promise."

"Good!" she said with another one of those silly immature smiles.

"Okay! I'm not really rich," she said secretly as if no one else knew and she was sharing it with me so we could be friends.

"Really? I heard your family is very rich," I said with a quirk of my eyebrows. She looked for a second quite impressed. I knew how to put one eyebrow up and that impressed my sisters as well.

"Wow! You can do that!" she said, pointing to my eyebrows.

I laughed. She looked like a tiny kid.

"Ah! I'm getting off topic. I always do that," she said again in that secretive way, as if we're becoming fast friends.

"Grandpa found me a year ago. I lived with my paren- I mean I lived with my adopted parents but I never knew I was adopted. We were kind of poor but it was okay. I loved them and they were my real family. Then grandpa found me. Apparently, I've been missing since I was 2 or 3. I was kidnapped and held for ransom. When the police chased after them, they ran away and sold me to an orphanage because they were scared they would be found out. I was adopted by my parents and they didn't know who I was either. Then grandpa found me... and it's been a whole big drag ever since," she said with another sigh as she took a small sip from her hot chocolate.

"What's so bad about being rich?" I asked. Makino didn't seem like she had any fun being poor and she's the only poor person I know. I didn't see what the fuss was. I mean her whole entire apartment is smaller than my bathroom.

"Oh nothing... At first, it was fun. I had everything I've ever dreamed of having. But I missed my parents. I missed my friends. I hated being stuck in a school with a bunch of very rich people and being stuck at home everyday and not being able to go out and buy my favorite snacks from the local vendor or ride my bike through the park. I guess I just miss those things. You see?" she asked.

I probably looked like I had no idea what she was talking about because she said, "Never mind. You were born rich. You're used to it."

"So you ran away because you weren't used to being rich?" I asked, surprised.

"Well not really. It's been a year and I'm adjusting. It's still a bit weird. I ran away because I just found out yesterday that I'm having an arranged marriage," she said with another one of her big sighs.

"Oh," I said, at a loss for words.

She looked at me and suddenly gasped.

"I didn't mean anything bad about you. Well...that is...I don't mean that I don't want to marry you. I mean I don't want to marry you. But not that no other person in the world would. Because I'm sure you're super nice and good-looking. But I just don't know you nor love you. Not that it's impossible to love you. Because you know, you're not that unlovable," she blabbed.

Then she turned very pink. I was on the verge of laughing.

"So we've established that I'm not _that _unlovable?"

"Ugh! I'm never going to get this right!" she said and put her hot chocolate down on the bedside table.

"It's okay," I said with a chuckle. "So why did you find me?"

"Because I wanted to see what you looked like. I was sort of curious. And also because I didn't have anywhere else to go. See my parents and friends and old home are in Sapporo and I don't have enough fare money to get back. I just don't want to get married," she said with a sigh as she fell back into the bed.

I looked at her and I felt a little bit sorry for her. Here she was, alone in the world and forced to marry a complete stranger. Then I thought I was pretty much the same. No...I had my mother and my sisters. That's more than she has.

"Have you called your grandfather?" I asked.

"Yes..." she said and then she sat straight up as if she had an epiphany.

"Do you think your mother will tell him that I ran away?" she asked with startling wide eyes.

"No I doubt it. Mother doesn't even know." I said. Her eyes are beautiful. They're soft and big and kind and very innocent. They are such beautiful eyes, almost honey colored. I caught myself before I drowned in it and looked away from them. They're almost…too dangerous.

"That's good. Ugh. He's coming tomorrow you know. He's going to take me back to that castle of his and make me learn waltzing and piano and sewing and all the horrible things in the world. I just want to play and run and read and be with my friends."

I couldn't believe it. She's so open that she's confiding in a complete stranger. Well maybe not strangers. I knew her name and basically her whole background. Yet she knew nothing of me. She probably realized the same too because the next thing she said was, "Do you want to marry me?"

"No!" I said rather quickly. I looked back at her and hoped she wasn't offended. She wasn't as she smiled at my sudden outburst.

"That's what I thought when I first learned I was getting married."

"We aren't getting married," I stated flatly.

"OH yes! Of course we aren't. It's sooo stupid," she said with an adorable grin, caring not a bit that I was turning her down. In fact, she seemed to be very happy. Totally different from all the other girls I've known. Usually, they were all climbing over me to get a date, let along marriage.

"I just wish there was a way to tell grandpa without his getting mad. Ugh! And now that it's winter vacation, I have two weeks at home with him. I can't stand it!" she yelled and covered her face with her hands as she fell back into the bed.

She got up again in a few seconds as if all those worries and stress were gone in seconds. I couldn't believe it.

"So what are you doing for winter vacation?" she said, completely forgetting about the previous topic.

"Winter vacation? Um...I'm going to Hawaii tomorrow," I said unsure of where this was going.

"Hawaii! Oh that sounds like fun! I've never been to Hawaii. Actually, I've never been outside of this country before. Grandpa doesn't want me to travel because he's afraid I'll get kidnapped again if I go on my own. And going with bodyguards is no fun at all."

"You don't have any friends?" I asked, putting up another eyebrow to show her that the question was a joke.

Instead of laughing, she heaved another sigh and turned slightly pink as she turned away.

"Of course I have friends," she said.

"You really suck at lying," I informed her with a smile.

She grabbed a pillow and hit me on the head. What happened to that timid scared little girl I met earlier tonight?

"And you're really mean!" she said with a laugh. Her laughter was really cute. It was somewhere between a giggle and a full-fledged laughter. And she had a little snort in the middle.

"Okay! Okay! I'm really mean. Now stop hitting me with the pillow!" I yelled as I put my hands over my head for protection.

"I guess you're right," she said as she hugged the pillow to herself.

"About the friend's thing?"

"Yeah... It's not that I didn't have friends before. But this new school I go to...all the people are jerks. They are rich and arrogant and mean people. They want to be friends with me because Grandpa is the richest man in Japan, not because they like me. Not like you though," she added the last sentence as an afterthought.

I smiled at her as she looked over me. Did she consider me a friend?

"Although you are kind of mean for dumping that girl," she said with a shrug.

"You saw that?" I asked, surprised.

She nodded her head.

"Listen, I didn't mean to dump her. I mean we aren't really dating. She's not my girlfriend or anything," I defended myself, not knowing why I needed to. "She has a husband and everything. We just wouldn't end up happy. So I broke up with her."

She thought for a second over my speech. "Why date her if she's married? Isn't that not allowed? Do people do that?"

I stared at her. Did she just say what I think she said? Dating married women is not allowed? She was about as naive and innocent as a newborn puppy. And here I was, going to destroy all her little childhood ideas. I was going to have to tell her that people do commit adultery and people are sometimes mean to each other and Santa Claus didn't exist. Maybe I shouldn't tell her the Santa thing. That might be just a tiny bit too traumatic.

"She's getting married," I lied.

"Ohhhh...but that's still horrible of you to go after her isn't it?" she asked with an innocent look in her eyes.

"I didn't know until then. That's why I broke up with her," I felt a little bad for lying. But it was a white lie right? The kind you tell to kids so that they won't burn themselves nor experience any emotional trauma until the last possible moment.

"Wow, then she's mean for hiding it," she said, the bright smile returning to her face.

"You should go to sleep, Harumi. It's almost 1 in the morning."

I got up and walked towards the door.

"Akira?" came that small little voice again that seems to be able to talk a lot.

"Yeah?"

"You can call me Haru. My parents and friends all do," and then her face crumpled up and she looked so sad for a second, like when Emu is being told she can't watch cartoons. I almost wanted to hug her. Instead, I walked on.

"Haru it is."

* * *

**A/N: Hey! Thanks for all the reviews! I had no idea i was going to get so many. I love Akira too. I think he's the only character not fully explored in Hana Yori Dango and that's why I want to write this. So there's probably like a million grammar errors in this and I'm sorry. So how do you like Haru? A little bit too childish? Not childish enough? Keep on reviewing and I'll get the next chapter out sooner! **


	3. Jetting to Hawaii

* * *

Ring ring

Ring ring!

I smiled from my dream. I was doing something with someone with very pretty shiny hair.

Ring ring!

I opened my eyes and sunlight flooded into my room.

Ring ring!

I looked around for that annoying noise. Bomb? Video games? Cell phone?

Ring ring!

I reached over to my nightstand and searched around with my hands. Finally, they landed on the cursed noisemaker and I flipped it open.

"Hello?" I muttered grumpily.

"Do _not_ tell me you just woke up!" screamed someone from the other end.

I rubbed my eyes a bit and looked at the screen.

Oh shit.

It's Soujiro.

I looked over to my nightstand.

It's 10:30.

Oh shit.

The plane leaves at 10:45.

Oh shit.

"Um..." I said trying to sit up in bed.

"Dude! Are you kidding me? I even called you specifically to go to sleep early! Ugh. Rui isn't even picking up his phone. It's only Makino and me here! You guys sleep way too much!"

"Sorry! I just had a very... difficult night," I said rubbing my eyes and trying to get adjusted to the sunlight streaming through my curtains.

"You could've had sex any day!" Soujiro yelled. I recognized the sound of people chattering in the back.

"Not that kind of difficult!" I yelled back.

"What?"

I think the only thing Soujiro does understand is sex. He loves women and would sleep with anybody and date a new girl every couple of days. I, on the other hand, have actual relationships with women.

"Never mind. Just book another flight," I said as I got up from bed, calling for the maids.

"I can't! This is the only commercial flight leaving for Hawaii. We have to wait until tomorrow night for the next flight. Tsukasa will be so pissed because of this."

I thought for a second and remembered Haru in the next room. She was richer than even Tsukasa. She definitely has a private jet right?

"Okay. Call Rui. Wake him up. Go to his house. Whatever. Then come to my house. I have a plan," I said quickly.

"I'll trust you Akira," Soujiro said before he hung up.

I put on a shirt and some pants before I walked silently up two staircases to the Guest Wing. I found her door and knocked. I hoped she was awake.

No sound.

I knocked again. Was she sleeping still? There was still no sound. I tried the handle and to my surprise, it wasn't locked. I opened the door. I expected her to be still in bed but there was no one inside. Then I heard laughter and voices drifting up from downstairs. I followed the voices to my mother's kitchen. She had a special kitchen built just for her and my sisters' use in order for them to bake all they wanted without disturbing the house chefs who prepared the actual meals we eat everyday.

I heard laughter from both of my sisters and the sounds of Haru's voice.

I opened the door and found a surprising scene in front of me. There was Haru, flour on her cheeks and wearing an apron with teddy bears printed on it and flipping what looked to be pancakes. My sisters were sitting on the countertop, laughing and joking with her and had flour on their faces and hair too. My mother sat at the small round table fit for 6, smiling and sipping a cup of coffee.

"Akira!" yelled Emu.

"Big brother!" yelled Memu.

Both of them jumped down the counter and ran straight into my arms, clinging to me and hugging me.

"We missed you so much!"

"You saw me last night," I said with a sigh as I hugged them back.

"But that was so loooong ago," Memu said.

I looked over and saw Haru laughing. I scowled at her. She simply laughed harder. Great.

"Akira, aren't you suppose to be on a plane to Hawaii right now?" my mother asked with a smile. "Have you decided to stay with us? Haru is sooo funny! She tells the most amazing stories!"

"Why do you have flour all over you?" I asked, not bothering to answer my mother's questions.

"Haru let us mix the batter!" Emu said as I carried her over to the table, with Memu clinging to my legs.

"Really? Is it eatable?" I asked with a quirk of my eyebrow.

Emu slid into my mother's lap and I pulled Memu off of my legs with some force as I set her on a chair as well.

"Yes! It's delicious," Haru said as she was busily putting pancakes on plates.

"Sure there's no poison?" I asked with a smile as I walked over to help her carry the plates.

"Of course-" and then she slipped on the tile floor and I was only there in time to catch her before she fell. I swooped her up in my arms. A sudden rushing sense of excitement and adrenaline filled my body.

I heard cheering and whistling in the back, only to find that I was holding her with one arm, bending down low and was very near to kissing her. I quickly led her up to a safe and standing position more then 5 meters away from me. The feeling was still there.

"So...pancakes," I said with an awkward smile as I took the plates on the counter over to the table.

"You caught her like you were in a fairytale!" my sisters said.

"You're like prince charming! I want to marry big brother when I grow up!" Memu said.

"Me too! Me too! He's just like Prince Charming!" Emu agreed as I set plates of pancakes in front of them.

"Sure you will..." I said with a smile as I went back to get the syrup. "But I just don't know who to pick. Do I want to marry Emu or Memu?"

Haru chuckled at my questions and carried over orange juice.

My five-year-old sisters thought for a second before both saying, "Marry Haru!"

I almost dropped the syrup.

Haru simply smiled at them as she placed orange juice in front of them and said, "I wanna marry a Prince Charming too. But your brother already has two princesses! Both Emu and Memu! Too much competition for me!"

We all sat down at the table as Haru startled telling my sisters a fairytale. I looked around the table and found myself surrounded by silly, immature girls who all behaved like they were five. Well two of them have a reason for that. They are five. I looked at Haru again as she was telling her story. She looked so energetic, using funny voices to differentiate the characters and using special effects. The girls and my mother all looked so engulfed in the story that I couldn't help but smile. Haru was something else.

After breakfast, I asked Haru about the plane as we sat near the fireplace, watching my sisters play tea. I felt a little weird, asking a complete stranger for a favor. But I suppose after last night, we were considered _friends_. I didn't know much about the term. My only friends were the F4…and we had known each other forever. Yet Haru had called us _friends_ last night. How do you become friends after one night? I felt a little ashamed for asking, but I had no other choice. It was either this or Tsukasa's anger.

"Of course you can borrow it. It is my fault that you were delayed this morning. If you hadn't met me, you would've gone to sleep at a reasonable hour and woken up on time. Plus, Grandpa has at least 4 planes and he never uses them because he's too old to travel. I'll call him up now," she said as she reached to grab her cell phone.

"He'll be here in a few hours anyways, wanting me to go back to the manor. There are not even kids there like Emu and Memu to play with," she said with a pout as she startled dialing.

Then I had a crazy thought and acted without thinking. I think it was that nice-guy part of me acting up again. Maybe Soujiro is right. Maybe I really should get rid of this nice-guy part of me. "Why don't you come along?"

She stopped for a second and turned to look at me with those very soft, glistening eyes.

"To Hawaii?"

"Yeah. It's not just guys either. There's another girl. You'll probably like her. Her name's Makino Tsukushi and she's not rich either," I said with an inviting smile.

"Okay..." she said hesitantly.

Then more confidently, she nodded. "I'll tell grandpa now and have someone pack for me back at home. He always wants me to make friends with rich people anyways."

* * *

And that's how two hours later, I was at the private airstrip that belonged to the Tokashiro's. Haru was standing beside me, humming to what I recognized as an old cartoon theme song and holding her luggage with a bright smile on her face. She had her Pokemon (I'm completely serious) backpack on and a Hello Kitty suitcase.

"Tell me about your friends," she said as she looked to me. We were waiting for Rui, Makino and Soujiro to get here.

"Well Rui is the quiet and silent type. He doesn't like to get into other people's business and he doesn't care much. Don't worry if he comes out a little cold towards you. It's his style. Tsukasa lives in New York. He's looking over his father's company while his father recovers from a stroke or heart attack. I can't remember which one. He's a bit rude and loud but again, it's his style. Don't be too offended. He's a nice guy on the inside. He's also a little dumb, especially with languages. Makino is Tsukasa's girlfriend. They've been dating for a couple of years now. She's poor and goes to our super rich school because Tsukasa pays her tuition. She's part of the gang now. She's really nice though can be a little violent at times to people who really deserve it. You'll love her. She's very down to earth and doesn't care much about money nor reputation. She also does stuff before she thinks. Soujiro is...well he likes to flirt a lot. So be careful of him. He has a lot of girlfriends and-"

"He has more than one girlfriend at once?"

Oh shit. Here I was, destroying another one of her innocent beliefs about the world.

"Well...he's not a very good guy towards his girlfriends. But he's a great friend. Just never ever date him, no matter what he says. Okay?"

"I pinky promise," she said with a smile.

"Akira!" came a voice from behind me. I turned around and found myself looking into the face of a very pissed off Soujiro. A sleepy Rui and a slightly annoyed Makino followed him. Great. Another 5-hour plane ride I'm looking forward to.

"What the fuck did I say about getting up early?" Soujiro yelled as soon as he was in front of my face. He didn't see the blushing, timid looking girl beside me.

I heard Haru gasp at the curse.

"Did you just..." she whispered, pointing at Soujiro with an accusing finger.

I sighed. This is definitely going to be a long trip.

"Soujiro, this is Tokashiro Harumi. Harumi, this is Soujiro. That's Hanazawa Rui and Makino Tsukushi. Harumi is kind enough to provide us the plane of her grandfather's. And I've invited her on this trip with us. I hope that's okay with you all," I made the introductions.

Rui shrugged his hello while Soujiro just nodded, still a little pissed off. Makino smiled at Haru and Haru smiled her timid, small smile back. She was so cute sometimes. Makino came over and held her hand out to Haru. Thank God someone was being polite.

"Hi. I'm Makino Tsukushi. You can call me Tsukushi, though," she said with a kind smile.

Haru smiled her genuine, crooked smile and shook Tsukushi's hand.

"My name is Harumi but you can call me Haru! All my friends do!" she said as she tuck a strand of her long black hair behind an ear and smiled at Tsukushi.

They seemed to pass a look between the two of them, the kind of look girls give each other and boys just don't understand. Girls are complicated. That's why I prefer grown up women.

"Are we getting on or not?" asked Rui as he picked up his suitcase and started to climb the jet. We all followed.

The jet was very spacious. There were bedrooms and a bar along with lounge chairs and an attendant who brought us drinks. We took our seats and sipped out drinks. I could feel the awkwardness hang over the group. They were all staring at Haru. Well Makino and Soujiro. Rui was already asleep in his chair. I wanted to say something. Make some conversation. But nothing came to mind. I usually excel at making uncomfortable silences go away but this time, I really couldn't do a thing.

"Tokashiro? Any relations to Tokashiro Ryouma?" asked Soujiro at last, after we had taken off.

"Yes, he's my grandfather," Haru replied in a tiny voice. If she was afraid of Soujiro, I wonder what would happen if she met Tsukasa.

Now Soujiro sparked up with interest. "So you're his lost granddaughter, the girl to inherit the whole Tokashiro fortune."

Haru merely nodded.

"Lost granddaughter?" Makino asked.

"It was in the news just last year. The lost granddaughter of the Tokashiro fortune. You do know that Tokashiro Ryouma is the richest man in Japan and basically one of the top ten richest people in the world. Tokashiro Ryouma had only one son. That son was to take over the Tokashiro Empire but he died in a car crash along with his wife. They left behind an infant daughter. Wasn't she named Tokashiro Hitomi?" he asked Haru.

She nodded and said in a smaller voice, "But my adopted parents called me Harumi. Grandfather agreed to call me that because that's been my name my whole entire life. All my official papers still say Hitomi."

"But why are you the lost granddaughter?" asked Makino as she sipped her coke, getting interested. I saw Haru over there, slightly annoyed. I would be too if others were talking about every single detail about my past. I wanted to stop Soujiro. But he kept going without noticing. Sometimes Soujiro can be as blind and pig-headed as Tsukasa.

"Because she was kidnapped when she was three. I think it was by part of the Japanese mafia," Soujiro said, glancing at me for a second before returning his attention to Makino.

The mafia? Mother never told me that. Did my father kidnap Haru? Is that even possible? But more importantly...why? She was my fiancée so I would gain everything after I married her anyways. It didn't make any sense. Perhaps Soujiro was simply mistaken.

"But they messed up. They sent a couple of novices who got scared and instead of getting the girl back to the underground mafia; they sold her to the orphanage in Sapporo. A poor couple adopted her. The thing is Tokashiro Ryouma had no other living relatives besides some distant cousins. He knew she wasn't killed, just lost. So he sent out search parties everywhere. DNA tests on every possible candidate. Some nobody would always turn up every couple of years and claim they were the real Tokashiro Hitomi."

Soujiro stopped and gave smiled charmingly at Haru. I rolled my eyes. He was going to flirt with her. I knew it. I knew after a couple of minutes, he'd realize that she's actually cute, and will want to date her. More like sleep with her. I felt sick for some weird reason.

"Guess they finally found you huh? I saw it in the papers a year ago. But they didn't give more information and you were never at any of the upper-class social parties. If you were, we would've definitely been introduced. Many families consider you a prize catch as a daughter-in-law," Soujiro said.

She groaned at the statement. "I don't intend on getting married anytime soon."

Soujiro laughed. "I would definitely agree with that," he said, meaning more than Haru could probably understand.

"So how did you meet Mimisaka?" Makino asked good-naturedly.

"He's my fiancé," she replied with another nervous tuck of her hair.

Suddenly, the whole entire plane got very quiet. I could hear Makino's sharp intake of breath and I also realized that Rui wasn't asleep. He opened his eyes and looked at me with interest. Soujiro, especially, stared first at Haru and then me.

I sighed. I knew this conversation was on the verge of happening.

"It's an arranged marriage," I explained.

Haru nodded enthusiastically.

"When?" gasped Soujiro.

"What?" I said, shocked.

"Hopefully, never," Haru offered.

Makino and Rui exchanged looks.

"What?" Makino asked.

"We don't want to get married," Haru said quietly.

"We're trying to get my parents and her grandfather to get us out of this mess," I said with a sigh. "Neither of us wants to get married. We've only met last night. That was the difficult situation I was dealing with, Soujiro."

"Oh," Soujiro said with a knowing smile though the look of shock was still on his face. "Less fun than the situation I had implied then?"

I smiled a little at the joke.

"So you grew up Sapporo?" asked Makino.

Haru nodded, glad to be off the topic of marriage.

"My grandparents used to live there and I would go up there every so often. Winters there are beautiful," she offered.

Haru smiled. "They are. I miss them. I miss everything, especially my parents."

Haru blushed and Makino moved closer, holding Haru's hand and I swear, she was on the verge of giving Haru a hug. Makino was like that. She's probably thinking right now how cute Haru is.

"You're so cute!" Makino said to a blushing Haru and proceeded to hug her.

Sometimes, I think I'm psychic or something.

The girls soon lapsed into a conversation about Sapporo and about going overseas. Neither of them had been to Hawaii and both were excited. Makino was trying to describe her limited overseas experience, to both New York and France. Haru gazed in wonder.

"Of course, everyone else at school has traveled all of Europe and North America and Hawaii. These guys have been to Hawaii at least 10 times."

"My school also! Everyone talks about their travels to England and the Caribbean and the Alps. It's so hard to believe. You know, I've never even been to Tokyo before this year. I've never been on a plane till I met Grandfather and he took me from Sapporo to Tokyo on a jet. I remember screaming the moment we took off. I was so afraid," Haru said with a blush.

I couldn't help chuckling a little at that.

"What school do you go to?" asked Soujiro, after hearing the conversation.

"Eirin," Haru replied in a very small voice. She was still afraid of Soujiro. I could see it. However, Soujiro wasn't discouraged. Instead, I think it only fueled him on. Idiot.

"You should come to Eitoku. It's much better than Eirin. What grade are you in? Are you a freshman in high school?" Soujiro asked with another charming smile.

She shook her head slowly. I can't believe Soujiro is hitting on her, especially when she's in high school and he's already in college.

"You're in middle school?" Soujiro asked, a little surprised.

"No," she said with a small giggle. "I'm in my second year of college."

All of us turned and stared at her in disbelief, even Rui. She looked no older than 16. But 19? Is that even possible?

"Wow," Makino said.

"Yeah, especially since Makino looks like she's 30," said Soujiro with a smile.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Makino yelled and kicked Soujiro lightly on the leg.

Haru watched the whole scene with a giggle.

* * *

A/N: AH! Sorry for the delayed update. I've been so busy with work and studying these days that I've barely had enough time to go online! Anyways, hope you like the story so far. Please review!


End file.
